Tenedos is mentioned in both the Iliad and the Aeneid, in the latter as the island where the Greeks hid their fleet near the end of the Trojan War in order to trick the Trojans into believing the war was over and into taking the Trojan Horse within their city walls. The island was important throughout classical antiquity despite its small size due to its strategic location at the entrance of the Dardanelles. In the following centuries, the island came under the control of a succession of regional powers, including the Persian Empire, the Delian League, Alexander the Great, the Kingdom of Pergamon, the Roman Empire, the Byzantine Empire, and the Republic of Venice. As a result of the War of Chioggia (1381) between Genoa and Venice the entire population was evacuated and the town was demolished. The Ottoman Empire established control over the deserted island in 1455. During Ottoman rule, it was resettled by both Greeks and Turks. In 1807, the island was temporarily invaded by the Russians. During this invasion, the town was burnt down and many Turkish residents left the island. |  |